Last living grandson of 10th U.S. President John Tyler, dies at 96
Share and Follow

CHARLES CITY, Va. (AP) Harrison Ruffin Tyler, the last living grandson of U.S. President John Tyler born 83 years after his grandfather left the White House in 1845, died. He was 96.

The cause of Tyler’s death on Sunday was not immediately released. John Tyler was 63 years old when Harrison Tyler’s father, Lyon Gardiner Tyler Sr., was born. And Harrison Ruffin Tyler was born in 1928 when his father was 75 years old and the presidential grandfather had been dead for more than 60 years.

The grandson was known for preserving his grandfather’s plantation and nearby Civil War fort. In a statement, Annique Dunning, the executive director of Sherwood Forest, a national landmark of President Tyler’s residence, said the president’s grandson, whose brother died in 2020, was a “beloved father and grandfather, he will be missed immeasurably by those who survive him.”

This undated photo provided by Annique Dunning, executive director of Sherwood Forest Plantation, shows Harrison Ruffin Tyler, grandson of U.S. President John Tyler, who died on May 25, 2025, at 96 years old. (Sherwood Forest Plantation via AP)

“He will be remembered for his considerable charm, generosity and unfailing good humor by all who knew him,” Dunning said.

Throughout his life, Tyler preserved Sherwood Forest, his grandfather’s plantation that enslaved dozens of people, including 43 people in 1860, just before the Civil War began. The grandson also helped restore and maintain Fort Pocahontas, a Union fort during the Civil War.

Tyler’s grandfather was a Democrat nicknamed the “Accidental President” after unexpectedly assuming the presidency when President William Henry Harrison died in office. President Tyler was the first vice president to gain control of the White House in the wake of a death.

The University of Virginia’s Miller Center described the president as “the last gasp of the Old Virginia aristocracy in the White House.” He had married twice and had 15 children, including Lyon Gardiner Tyler Sr.

The time between the president’s birth and his grandson’s death spans 235 years.

Share and Follow
You May Also Like
Hispanic Heritage Month: Chicago's Benito Juarez Community Academy students preserve Mariachi music, tradition

Hispanic Heritage Month: Students at Benito Juarez Community Academy in Chicago Keep Mariachi Music and Tradition Alive

CHICAGO (WLS) — Benito Juarez High School in Pilsen is the only…
Luigi Mangione asks for federal charges to be dropped in UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson murder

Luigi Mangione Requests Dismissal of Federal Charges in UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s Murder Case

Attorneys representing Luigi Mangione have requested a New York federal judge on…
Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins is murdered in jail

Former Lostprophets Singer Ian Watkins Reportedly Killed in Prison

Paedophile Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins has been murdered behind bars where he…
Doctor's double life exposed after hidden camera discovery leads to prison murder plot

Doctor’s double life exposed after hidden camera discovery leads to prison murder plot

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Stacey Rutherford believed she…
Pro-Palestinian agitators attack police as riot erupts in Dem-run city, officials say

Police union leader says pro-Palestinian rioters ‘lured’ officers into ‘gauntlet,’ warns agitators

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! The president of a…
Former Doctors Without Borders leader calls group 'accomplices of Hamas' over Gaza war response

Former Doctors Without Borders leader calls group ‘accomplices of Hamas’ over Gaza war response

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Doctors Without Borders, or…
3 teenagers arrested following weekend carjacking in Birmingham

Sheriff’s Office in Jefferson County Reports Two Arrests in ‘Operation Guardian Sweep’

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Ala. (WIAT) — The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office announced the…
Trump blames Dems as his administration slashes 4,100 federal jobs

Trump Attributes Reduction of 4,100 Federal Jobs to Democrats

() President Trump on Friday blamed Democrats as his administration identified more…